I had to tow my car ONE FOOT to get it unstuck, right next to my driveway! GRRRRR
Locust Fork
Member Posts: 32,005 ✭✭✭✭
I don't know if any of you have found this with your own car....but there is NOWHERE to tie a tow strap to on my 2020 Highlander. I even saw where there is a bolt you can buy for some models and it screws into a hole in the front of the car....mine doesn't have that either. You are just supposed to use a "wheel tow" to pull your car if anything happens.
It has little notches WAY underneath the car that you put little hooks into. There is NOTHING just a normal person can tie a rope to or attach a chain to. Its CRAZY.
So, this is what happened.....
I had the enclosed trailer hooked up to my Highlander, backed it into a place near the driveway where it stays out of the way, but not so out of the way we worry someone might steal it. I left it hooked to my car overnight because I didn't have the chocs to keep it from rolling. Larry got them out this morning and went to pull my car forward....it just spins on the grass. The trailer is behind it, so you cannot back it up and get a running go. The trailer will roll off into the woods if we try to move it from behind the car. Its just a few feet away from the driveway...but stuck.
So, I ended up having to call a tow truck to come get my car unstuck. Its just the most ridiculous nonsense ever. I was VERY close to just rolling my windows down and wrapping a rope around there and pulling it. It wasn't even a big incline....just a little soft wet grassy spot with enough of an incline to make it impossible. $75 for 10 minutes of work. I'm happy to be done with it, but next time I park that trailer its going somewhere else!
Comments
That's odd. I thought that nearly every car made came with a tow-loop:
I any case, I'm glad you are free!
The tow hook is an option most cars don't include.
I bought a 20' tow strap for me to pull my wife's car around, when she does things...
I wrap it around a front tire assembly, and very gently pull.
Watched a tow company do it. Strap was cheaper than hiring them.
there is times when you have to do what you have to do and move on
as a young fellow I can not count the times I was stuck in the mud , or snow or just off the road ( part of where Ditch-runner came from )
I have used my floor mats , rocks, chunks of wood , pieces of cardboard what ever I could find wedge under my tires several times I would put my car in gear ( always a manual ) get the wheels rolling in the direction I wanted then get out push the car ( when by my self ) it worked many a time and always got out and lucky way more than I could count.
I also have had a 4 wd truck of some kind for 45 + years after being stuck so much in the winter ) I have pulled out countless people I always have chains tow straps jumper cables what ever I thought I would need with me
one time sticks out in my mind on the way home from work one day a full sized van was stuck he got off the road and just had thet WTH look so I pulled over and said I will pull you out but you hook up your van so any thing goes wrong
so he took the tow strap wrapped it around his plastic grill in the van .. I had to say it are your kidding me ( not the actual words I used 🤐) so I explained th etowing pulling process to him put a chain around the front suspension and pulled him out , while driving away I thought 😆 I should have just let him do it pulled the grill home behind my truck 😉
many more stories of helping people but thats a different day
I have also had to call a tow truck more than a few times when my car / truck was unable to be driven 😏😪
I dug the book out....it didn't say anything about a tow ring, but when I googled pics it showed the loop on some images. So, we popped the little cover off where the loop would screw in and there is no threaded hole there, its just plastic square covers over nothing at all. Sooooo frustrating. When the book only said to have it towed by a wheel tow truck I was bamboozled!
Carpet strips and added kitty litter as necessary. They weigh nothing and can get you out of some amazing situations.
Elsewise if you have someone dumb and impervious to the cold like me, have them climb under there and put a strap around the front differential. Pull gently.
I have also heard a lot of new cars no longer have a spare there suggestion just call for service
If any of you have a newer car...you might want to go check to see if you have anything to hook up to in an emergency, just so you know what you are dealing with if something DOES happen.
Where did the tow truck driver hook the chain?
My main issue was the trailer. I couldn't hook back up and pull it out....it would just be "more" stuck. We tried putting stuff under the tire, but it would just let the car spin and start to roll back making the tow ball thing hit the trailer. It was just the perfect scenario to be all screwed up.
He hooked the little hooks of his chains to these little holes on the underside of the car.
I have AAA Premium or platinum or whatever they call it. I think it costs $114.00 a year and includes free towing, they will bring you gas if you run out, fix a flat on the side of the road, all kinds of cool stuff. You should absolutely have it.
I've got free towing with my car insurance....its just so silly how all of this went though.
Couple of years ago #4, the grandkids and I were down at the creek having a good time. We had gone down there in the side by side. Dude in a small truck managed to sink his truck up to the axle in creek gravel.
Called the son-in-law. He brought my truck and tow strap. Can't remember to what we hooked the strap on stuck dude's truck. Hooked it to the ball on my truck. Eased him out without yanking/tearing anything loose.
We were lucky we were able to get a cell signal. Saved the day. Would have been interesting trying to get a tow truck in there.
As soon as Larry gets your Christmas tree put away, he needs to pour your concrete pad to park your car and trailer,,,
Yep. No more changing tires on the truck. Jump starts or anything else.
We had the same problem a few yeas ago. My Bride went to a friend's home for a get together. She parked on top of a
drainage spot near the driveway....sunk right up to the oil pan. Our old Escape had place to tow or tie on a tow stap. The newer one had a place to screw one in, but it was a piece of equipment NOT included with the vehicle.
75 bucks later, a local tow company had her out in 5 minutes.....
I backed my dump trailer in just a little too far one day & the van tires spun trying to pull it out. No problem? I hooked a tow strap from my Jeep to the van's front cross bar & had wifey drive the van. I went back to see what was wrong when it wouldn't budge. I had told her to release the parking brake & give it just a little gas. But, it was my fault that I didn't tell her to put it in drive. 😖
The only vehicle I have that is not 4 wheel drive is the forklift.
Margaret Thatcher
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."
Mark Twain
Make it easy. Throw a pair in your trunk.
Have Larry spend some time watching this youtube channel. It's good family friendly entertainment and probably one of the best channels on youtube.
You can use a soft shackle around the lower control arm on your Highlander as a front tow point.
Soft shackle example:
Jump to 10 minutes 30 seconds to see Matt explain using the lower control arm (A Arm):
When your trailer is not attached, the rear hitch receiver acts as a rear recovery point. I actually need to get a hitch installed on our 2021 Toyota Highlander XSE.
On my 2019 Toyota 4Runner, I use a Hitch Shackle as a rear recovery point:
https://www.amazon.com/USA-Receiver-Accessories-Rhino-Receivers/dp/B06WLMF23C/
My whole bloody truck is a recovery point. Or anchor point as needs arise.
Yall don't know how close I was to just rolling my windows down and tossing a rope through them. There's so much plastic on these things these days. I figured with my luck I'd yank the whole front windshield off.
3 cylinder? I had no clue!
I just got what I did because I'm on the road sooooo much. I need all the crap like a/c in the seats and the fancy cruise control to keep me going these days. If I ever find a way to do it I'm getting one of those self driving cars! That would be awesome.
I cannot imagine what it will be like to get that worked on when the time comes.